A really fun and festive experience combined with authentic, tasty German food. We came the day after Christmas around 5:00pm and got in line, expecting a 30 minute+ wait for a table considering how long the line was, but we're pleasantly surprised when all the parties ahead of us were quickly seated and we followed after; totalling approximately a 15 minute wait. We chose to eat in the beer garden, which was set up like a traditional beer garden with wooden picnic tables. It was covered with heaters throughout to provide warmth from the winter weather. A pair of musicians dressed in material German clothes came around all the tables and played cheery polka music up entertain guests waiting for their food; I typically don't like table side entertainment like this or mariachis, because it often feels very intrusive and grubbing for tips, but these gentlemen seemed genuinely playful and there to entertain. We (2 adults and a 7 year old child) ordered what we thought was a reasonable amount of food, but ended up being entirely too much. In true beer garden fashion, we started with a huge stein of the more popular hefeweisen to share between my wife and and an order of potato pancakes. You receive 3 fairly large pancakes and a whole gravy boat of applesauce and sour cream. They are different than other potato pancakes I've had, I was expecting something more like a latke/hash brown with shredded potatoes light batter/binder, but these were considerably thicker and more dense/caky in texture. The pancakes were very tasty, but filling; my wife and I each ate one and we had a full one leftover. Our son ordered the kids chicken fingers served with crinkle cut fries. Nothing spectacular, just on par with what you would expect from any other restaurant; kid friendly and very "safe." We decided to split the sampler platter ($56 in 12/2034) as it seemed like the best value to try everything. It included one piece each of sauerbraten, sweinbraten, beef roll, smoked pork chop, pork schnitzel, and garlic wurst. My favorites in order from most to least was the smoked pork chop, garlic wurst, pork schnitzel, sauerbraten, beef roll, and the sweinbraten. Each meat smothered in a different type of either pan sauce or gravy created a very distinctive flavor for each dish, ranging from extremely umami for the pork chop to lighter with a touch more acid for the two braten meats. My least favorites we're not because they tasted "bad' or not to my liking. I thought that sweinbraten was a little dry because it was a braised pork loin, which tends to get tough if even slightly overcooked and the beef roll was just plain..... Weird; a pickle spear wrapped in ham, wrapped in thinly sliced, well done beef. With a large beer to share, full appetizer, and the sheer volume of the sampler platter, we ended up with quite a few leftovers. The atmosphere is pretty on par with most other German inspired beer garden restaurants I've eaten at. The service is very friendly and attentive and the food is a good value; you'll leave with plenty of leftovers. read more

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Waited in pretty long line but was rated #1 German restaurant so thought it'd be worth it. Potato pancake app was so thick - definitely more like kugel. I had the Sauerbraten - meat and gravy were ok but potato dumpling was dry and so was red cabbage which is usually the best part. Husband had the pork schnitzel and fries and thought his was really good though. read more

Whenever you're in Helen, you HAVE TO stop here. The service is top notch. The food is the best German food in town and the ambiance is perfectly matched with that of an authentic German restaurant complimented with an incredible musical duo of men who play the accordion and the tuba. They really just tied the whole experience together, as they played music for the guests here at this restaurant. My husband and I were SO happy when they came out to play music and Im talking super big smiles from ear to ear! They really know how to work the crowd! We loved it! Now let's talk about the food. Soon after we sat down, a man stopped by our table as he was leaving and heavily recommended the "Sampler platter for two." He said he had eaten a lot of German food in his lifetime and this was his favorite place to eat and the sampler platter was the best way to eat a little bit of everything good they had to offer. He said, "well, everything here is good, but if you don't know what to get, just go with the sampler platter. You won't regret it!" So, we got it and boy, were we so happy about it. In that moment, I realized how much I like German food. Everything was good, from the spaetzle to the red cabbage to the sauerkraut to the jagerschnitzel to the gypsy sauce to the sausage to every other peice of meat on that platter. We also had the French Onion Soup and that was really, really good and tasty! This was a truly meal I will never forget! read more

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If you are interested in true German/Eastern European food, this is the place ... it's the real deal!!! Highly recommended. Enjoy!!!!

We waited 25 minutes for a table, to only wait over an hour for very mediocre food. The schweinebraten pork was 90% fat and utterly inedible. The holzfäller steak was also very very fatty. Chicken cordon bleu was surprisingly the best dish we got. Service was lackluster, because we didn't order beer I guess? The table next to us did and got ample attention. I wouldn't eat here again. Props to the tuba and accordion players though. They were a lot of fun! read more

We stopped by Helen for lunch after our saturday hike. Walk away from the downtown to find this awesome German restaurants. The service is awesome and the food is great. Well except for the BBQ ribs, don't get the baby back ribs. The pork chop is veryyyy good and cooked perfectly. The chef schnitzel is very cheesy and also very well prepared. Overall, 2 of us were happy and 1 was unhappy so that is a pretty great odd. read more

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This is probably the first time I've ever loved German food. The pretzel had a ton of flavored butter and was soft and fluffy. The onion soup was a nice addition and cooked what I assume is the German style with larger onions and additional veg. The pork schnitzel was soooooo good! Super tender and the gravy could come as a soup it was so good. I'm always a fan of spatzle and this was a good side for the schnitzel. My husband went with a garlic wurst that was delicious. The sausage had a nice texture and perfect flavoring. He had the potato salad as a side which was a nice bright flavor. This place changed my opinion of German food. It's absolutely worth a stop if you are in Helen. read more

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Service was great, ambiance was great, they have cats sitting around we only saw one and she was the cutest thing. Food was also very good, but the ESCARGOT, wow, that was exceptional!! I had tried escargot once before on a french restaurant and did not like, this escargot completely changed my opinion on escargot!! Great job! read more

I was visiting my sister in Georgia with my mom and we all wanted to see Helen in all it's glory. We visited the Bodensee because of its reviews and it just seemed to be the hotspot of the town for German food. We were immediately greeted and guided by who I assume was the owner? She was a woman who had a German accent I believe, and she really seemed to take control with guiding people to tables which was great because it was New Years Eve and so so busy! We were seated next to a family (it seemed like there were only families with little children in this building, there was supposedly a separate side that was the "restaurant" part but we were not seated there) and this family had xylophones that the children were (I'll just say it as politely as I can) obnoxiously playing the instruments to the point where I couldn't hear anything nor have a conversation with my family. At first I thought how rude it was for the family to bring these toys/instruments into a food establishment but then I realized the restaurant was giving them out because another family came and their child also started playing with one making it hard to hear or be comfortable yet again. Then I saw there was a stack of these toys and that's when I realized the restaurant was providing them to families. As much as I love the idea of distracting children so parents can enjoy a beer or two, I think there are toys that are much more quiet that wouldn't completely disrupt/ruin the dining experience for others. I couldn't focus on what my waitress was saying because it was so distracting and loud. Thankfully, our waitress was so nice (she was this petite blonde girl) and she actually was so kind to me regarding the noise. My mom and I ordered the garlic bratwurst which came with German potato salad and sauerkraut. My sister order the Chef's schnitzel with spaetzle. The garlic bratwurst is made in house and was pretty tasty! The sauerkraut was, well...sour, but that was to be expected. The German potato salad was heavenly!! I can't believe this was my first time trying it. My sister's schnitzel was crispy and delicious and the spaetzle was very good as well. Would I get the bratwurst dish again? Probably not because the schnitzel was really good and I'd love to try that with one of their gravies. The beer was delicious and huge as far as portions go. Would I go again? Probably but I can't handle the loud noise of xylophones in an enclosed space where I'm trying to socialize with my family. Food: 7.5/10 Service: 12/10 Ambiance: 4/10 read more

Bodensee Restaurant - Homemade Garlic Wurst - German Near Me - Helen, Georgia

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Fun atmosphere, lively German music and excellent German fare, my favorite place to dine when visiting Helen. Great variety of dishes to try different flavors. read more

Our family originally was going to try a different restaurant but this local from Helen that we were talking to hype this place up. He was telling They owners are from Germany. My sister in law has lived in Germany for a long time. We arrive on around 11:35 we were given the options of seating inside or outside. We sat inside which was very small. It's good thing we arrived early by the time we were done it's which was around 12:45 there was a long line of people waiting to be seated. Which most likely they will be seated outside. This is my second time trying German food from an actual German family. It's just not my cup of tea. My pork chop was supposed to in a tomato sauce but my sauce looked more like a gravy sauce. My sister in law enjoyed her schinzel. The rest of the family's thought it was ok. One of reason why I am giving it a meh star is because of the sever. We had order chicken tender for the little one she totally forgot to ring it up & bring it out. We had to wait a bit for the little one food. Then she didn't come back for a while. I am not sure if they had her outside waiting on people as well the inside was super small. read more

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No free water you must purchase bottled water! Great beers great martini French onion soup had a weak broth tasted like chicken beef broth mix... plus I found carrots in it. Not a home run Goulash soup was a home run! Restaurant is clean and nice as well as the staff read more

Bodensee Restaurant - Made a good martini - German Near Me - Helen, Georgia

We went and ate, had snails and schnitzel, the place was nice and people were friendly. The food was really good. read more

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Went with yelp ratings and boy was it right. I went with the food my host recommended dinner. My 10 year old daughter choose the Dinner cheesespaetzle with bacon. My wife and I shared the Dinner Chef schnitzel pork. They were delicious. Love the patio like outdoor ambiance. Very pet friendly. One minus, parking is limited. read more

Bodensee is a good restaurant near the downtown Athens area and if you happen to park near one of the public parking, it is within walking distance from there. We went there on a Sunday evening to enjoy some German food. Here is the summary of my experience: Ambiance 4/5 - This is spread across both indoor and outdoor seating. It has a german wide with chic restaurant vibes Service 5/5 - The service was good and quick even with a full house. There was someone there to make sure you had everything you needed Food Quality 3.5/5: We had chicken Schnitzel with mushroom, onion, cheese, and a side of french fries. The beer that my brother-in-law ordered was light and fresh but he said he didn't really like the Angus grilled beef strip steak that he ordered. Although the french fries were really good and almost as good as McDonald's fries. Value for money 3/5: Definitely on the costly side. We ordered chicken Schnitzel which was $21 for two pieces. It had a good portion but on a hungry day, I could eat it all by myself. Overall, visit this place if money is not a concern and you want to experience german food. The beef was really costly priced at ~ $35 for two pieces. The draft beer jug was good(i do not remember the name) and priced at $8.95 read more

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Very disappointed! If I could leave zero stars, I would. There's literally nothing good to say. We sat for almost 30 minutes without menus, without having even a drink order taken, with our waitress helping every other table in our small room except us. When she finally came to take our orders she realized we didn't have menus. The other couple with us ordered the escargot. The picture says it all. The wilted and brown salad pieces (iceberg, cabbage and shredded carrot) tossed into the butter was pretty gross and also made no sense. We've had escargot plenty, but these tasted very dirty. We decided they tasted more like "ditch oysters" than escargot. (We had to laugh at that point with how bad things were.) It was around this point that the lights went out in the tiny room we were seated in. The waitresses didn't seem concerned and kept moving. Another table in this room also told us that was the fourth time it had happened while they were there. We both got the sampler platter for two. Considering this restaurant came highly recommended, we assumed the sampler would be awesome. Meats were very dry. The beef rolls (on both of our plates) were all undercooked when you cut into them. The schnitzel...over fried. Pork chops were probably the best thing on the plate, but still very dry. The sampler of the sides..the potato salad was the only semi edible thing on this place. The spatzle was dry and very odd compared to what it's looked like at every other restaurant we've been to. The cabbage was meh. The sauerkraut was completely inedible due to the excessive amount of black pepper added to it. Our waitress made the comment that she's still learning to pour beer (even though she works at a German restaurant...). Which explains the 20oz beer steins half full of foam. But also, the room temperature white wine... Our waitress also didn't realize she had to make some of our appetizers until at least 15min after we ordered it. The 3 other tables in our room remained dirty and full of barely half eaten food (should've been an indicator to us) for the duration of our meal. 2 hours total for one of the worst meals any of us has ever had. 10/10 DO NOT recommend. read more

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Visit them FIRST in Helen!! Such kind folks! We had our dog and they gladly welcomed us into their tented area with the most beautiful cats that sat with us while we enjoyed a fresh beer and delicious food! The schnitzel, beer, and pretzel were amazing ! Loved the food and the hospitality ! read more

If you're a person of color, I'd recommend avoiding this place. The moment we sat down, we weren't greeted or anything. Weren't given menus, weren't asked what we'd like to drink. We had to stop a waitress in order to be talked to. Everyone else that was sat after us received menus and got their drinks right away. Literally waited 25 minutes after being seated to get menus and that's because we flagged someone down. Food wise, it was okay. Their beer was really good, as expected and hoped for. We got the chef schnitzel. It was ehh. If the absence of seasoning is used in Germany, then this food was authentic. The chicken wasn't seasoned that well and tasted bland but the cheese compensated for it. Jaeger schnitzel was okay too. Still wasn't as seasoned as we would've liked. The spaeztl and potatoes were nottttt it. Didn't even taste like they had salt on them. But again, it may just be our Hispanic/Asian tastebuds. The pretzel was really good though. They smothered it in butter. The cheese dip was cold, not sure if that how it's supposed to be served, but if it is, wasn't too bad; just would've been better if it was warm. Definitely a cool ambiance. Blasting German music, waitresses dressed up. I recommend coming here for Oktoberfest and for their beer and pretzel. read more

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Came here for labor day weekend vacation and out of all the places I ate at, this was the most authentic. The pretzel was fresh but a but odd with cold cheese spread. We got the Jägerschnitzel with a side of spätzle. Their spätzle is homemade and absolutely delicious. The sauce on the schnitzel was delicious. We inhaled it down with a liter of beer. I don't think my grapefruit beer had much alcohol in it though but it was good and my bf liked his erdinger dunkel. I'm glad we split 1 entrée because the portions were so large! Our order even came with 2 pieces of schnitzel. The service was extremely good. The waitresses wear German outfits to make it feel festive. This place definitely deserves another visit in the future! **Tip: It gets super busy so try to go a bit earlier than you plan to eat read more

Bodensee Restaurant - Jäegersnitzel with homemade spätzle (absolutely delicious) - German Near Me - Helen, Georgia

The food was mediocre. Mediocre is generous... I ordered a pork kebab which was DRIER than the desert floor. The waitress was phony nice. Please don't quote 20 oz is half a liter and 30 oz is 1 liter when it isn't. Please look up a simple conversion. No wonder the Brits don't respect us. Spouse ordered a skillet pork dish, which you couldn't cut with a steak knife! The town is super cute, but leave your beliefs and hateful attitude at home. There is a reason Wendy's was the busiest food establishment in town! Also, stop asking how the food is when it is clearly not good. read more

Great service, phenomenal sausages, massive beers, and 10/10 vibes. This place feels like you're in a German Biergarten minus the fits. Highly recommend swinging by for a brat bc the casing will snap back at you. Fries left a bit more to be desired but the other sides like potato salad, red slaw, and sauerkraut were perfect. read more

Bodensee Restaurant - Sausages and sides - German Near Me - Helen, Georgia

So we came here on a tour and loved it so we are back for a full on dinner! Grabbed a table outside since it was so nice and it is not usually when we visit. Service was great and we had our order in for the salad, goulash soup and sampler for 2. So many great flavors it is hard to mention them all but my fav was still the schnitzel and sausages. The pickle stuffed ones were really unique. Goulash was tasty but the meat was overcooked and tough. Should it be? Next visit will just get a single place of something. read more

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Perhaps I don't like German food, but the experience I had here was not close to impressive. The look of the restaurant and attire worn by the staff fits the aesthetic is quite lovely. However, despite having a not busy (but also not empty) restaurant, service was quite slow. When it comes to the food, I thought the pretzel was great, but it was served with a cheese dip that reminded me of cheese whiz. Again, maybe German food isn't right for me. However the bratwurst serving was not appealing and unfortunately tasted the same way it looked. The photo attached is what was provided to me. Sauerkraut kind of leaked over the rest of the dish, didn't taste much of the greens, and the bratwurst itself didn't have much of a punch. I do believe my friends chicken schnitzel was a much better order. I do hope your experience is better than mine if you choose to dine here! read more

Bodensee Restaurant - Sauerbraten - German Near Me - Helen, Georgia

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My husband and I got food poisoning eating here on 1/3/25. We wanted to love it, food was great- until hours later we were extremely ill. We believe it was from a noodle and cheese dish we ordered for our toddler and thank god he didn't partake. Service and atmosphere was great. These things happen we know. read more

The sampler platter for two was amazing. Love the meats and cabbage. Great experience. Looking forward to being in the area again.

Came across this place and we're so happy we did! Food was delicious, very authentic German food. 100% recommend.

The food was amazing. we got a sampler for 2 so we could try a bunch of different menu items. Typical German beers which are served correctly. The inside is very nice. The service was good. read more

Bodensee Restaurant - Beer menu - German Near Me - Helen, Georgia

This is a must stop for a traditional German meal. The staff is so friendly and the food was amazing. We started with the potato pancake and the pretzel. So good! The pretzel was hot and so good and add the beer cheese and it was a great pairing. The potato pancakes were cooked perfectly and reminded me of my Oma's. I ordered the sauerbraten, so delicious and the dumpling was perfection. The only downfall and my personal preference was the red cabbage was not the way I like it, but taste for yourself and decide. My husband got the garlic wurst which could feed two people, he loved it!! read more

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The service was wonderful, however their German food is second rate. Don't waste your money on this place.

We were in town for Oktoberfest an we need we had to have some authentic German Food before the event started and we also new we had to to eat something heavy. The decided to try Bodensee Restaurant since they seemed to have true German food which is what we wanted. We arrived for lunch around 11:00am-11:30am and had not problem getting a table inside. The also had a tent up for out door seating. Once seated our waitress brought us water and and asked if we wanted anything else to drink. They did have soda but it was all served by the can but when in Helen Georgia for Oktoberfest you drink German Beer so I ordered myself a 32oz stein. We also had to have a Jumbo Pretzel so we ordered one too. Our beers and Pretzel came out pretty and wow this pretzel was amazing. I was so soft and flavorful. I will say the one thing that caught us off was that the beer cheese it came with is served cold but it was still delicious. I could sit there drink beer and eat pretzel after pretzel all day. For my entrée I new I had to get something other then sausage/different Wurst since that's what I had eaten yesterday so I had to go Schnitzel. I ended up going with the Jaeger Schnitzel with Mushroom Cream Sauce and it was amazing. Probably the best I have had. Also since it was lunch time they had a lunch menu so prices were also great. Everyone loved there food from the Sausage to the Spaetzle & Cheese which shocked us by how good it was. You have to come by. Just an heads up when were left it was packed so make sure to come early. read more

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Relaxed atmosphere, reasonably priced. Family of 4, $53 + tip. Live music was great too read more

Bodensee Restaurant - House salad with dill dressing was simple but hit the spot. - German Near Me - Helen, Georgia

I've never had German food. We had the sampler for 2 and a Bavarian pretzel. To be honest, the pretzel was no different than any other pretzel. On the sampler, the various pork chops and sausages were good. Everything is smothered in the same brown gravy. The pork schnitzel (breaded, boneless, thin, sauteed) was by far the best thing on the plate. The sides were all tasty but I didn't love any of them. The best part was our waitress. I believe her name was "Kinsley"? She gets 5 STARS!!! That young woman did not stop from the moment I walked in. This restaurant's kitchen is relatively slow so we were there about 45 minutes before it arrived. We were warned and it allowed for time to take in the music and sights. Anyways, when she brought the check, I made her sit with us and chat a bit to give her a break. Her sneakers had completely worn out, falling apart soles. She said she was on her 5th or 6th double this week!!!! read more

Bodensee Restaurant - Waiting for dinner. Beautiful day. - German Near Me - Helen, Georgia

On the hunt for authentic food in a touristy town we stumbled across this place and gave it a try. Overall a good experience but not great. Authentic food- yes, just not well executed. As you walk in the layout is kind of messy. We didn't know where to stand or be greeted. Luckily our server caught the awkwardness and ended up seating us. Our server gave us some good recommendations (which we should have taken. However there were 3 of us and all indecisive so we went with the sampler for 3 plate. A few things we really liked, and the rest we didn't touch. Their menu is extensive so definitely take the time to get some recommendations. In this case, less is more! The pork schnitzel with jager gravy was our absolute favorite! Highly recommend. Smoked pork chops came in second and the garlicwurst was pretty good as well. The red cabbage was delicious, as well as the potatoes but the spaetzle just lacked. Everything else on the sampler plate was super dry. I would definitely stick with one dish. I did appreciate the sampler choices. Many options for bigger parties. They have German beer & wine which was a plus for us! We went with a franziskaner hefeweizen. The beer was warm, maybe it was the mug. Either way warm beer is not my preference. Service was great, we came in on a Saturday night just before 8 PM and it wasn't too busy. Expect to wait if coming in during dinner rush. If you've been overseas don't expect this to live up to those standards. All things considered, this seems to be the most authentic German food in the area. The pork schnitzel would be worth coming back for. With so many touristy restaurants in the area I really wanted to love this place. read more

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This was some excellent German food. We had the smoked pork chop with the onion pepper gravy that was amazing, potato salad was dang good, and sauerkraut which was a nice sour balance to the plate. We also had the chicken schnitzel and spaetzle and both were top notch! Highly recommended!!! read more

Wonderful food and excellent service! They even had live German music playing. Highly recommend if you are in the area!

Food was painfully average, almost nothing stood out, the pan fried potatoes were okay at best. The wait for the food was incredibly long despite it not being that full and we never got checked on to make sure our food was good or our drinks were full. It to forever to get our check. Will not be coming back. read more

This place is a rip off. Targeted for tourists but otherwise is not good at all. For $30, i was thoroughly disappointed and annoyed i wasted that much money for a meal i could have made myself. The portion was small and the service was ok. We had a big party so i take that as apart of it, but it took forever, over an hour for us when we placed our food to it getting to us. Disappointed and upset for $30 meal that was lackluster and bland. read more

Bodensee Restaurant - Chicken Schnitzel and German potato salad. - German Near Me - Helen, Georgia

This would be a knock it out of the park 5 if our food had been hot when served. We had German beer, the German Sampler for Two, and the Apple Strudel for desert. Prices are high but a good value for the portions. The food even cold was outstanding. The waitress was friendly, attentive and sympathetic to our concern. Management was not. The restaurant was rustic German fitting the food and town vibe. It was dog friendly on the porch. read more

Bodensee Restaurant - Apple Strudel - German Near Me - Helen, Georgia

We've been here before and last time had a better experience. Today was just ok. Food was ok, service was ok. Not sure what was off this visit, but not sure if we will visit next time or try another place further down the strip. Outside and inside seating. They have lunch and dinner options. Lots of outside seating. Tables need to be tightened up. read more

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If I could give less than i would!!! I try to give everyone a chance but this place just pissed me off!!! Saved this place for our last meal in Helen as we were told that it was good authentic German food. That's a crock of sh*t!!! The beer was way over priced and the food was outrageously over priced. 2 beers $25-1liter and 1- 1/2liter. Platter of food $56.....I would have paid $10 for the meal had I known. The meat was as dry and tasteless as sand. No wonder they charge so much for beer as you have to have it so you don't choke on dry tasteless roast. Service was terrible (most servers were sitting around one of the picnic tables gossiping). We waited around 15 minutes before anybody came to take our order. It's a family style eatery so just big tables with chairs around them. This place is crap!! We will never eat here again. read more

Bodensee Restaurant - Platter of crap and spetzle - German Near Me - Helen, Georgia